Steinesongo Too many fans seem to be blown away

Stellead Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

Sharkflei Your blood may run cold, but you now find yourself pinioned to the story.

Stephanie There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

mark.waltz Shirley reached the peak of her career with this post civil war drama that has qualities about it both pleasing and disturbing. With servants (no longer slaves) who can't spell and seemingly addicted to the old way of life, this view of the old south is overloaded with charming, if stubborn white folk and mammy and pappy colored folk who love their white employers who probably once "owned" them. Shirley is there to charm the viewer, but it is obvious that her performance is one that suffers from too much direction rather than creating a fleshed out character.Old southern colonel Lionel Barrymore has disowned daughter Evelyn Venable for marrying a northern soldier. They return years later with young daughter Shirley who quickly charms the mustache off of grumpy grandpa, dances up the stairs with butler Bill Robinson and goes to a baptism with lovable maid Hattie McDaniel and listens to classic negro spirituals. Will a reconciliation between Barrymore and Venables be facilitated by Shirley? Dumb question, easy answer.This song of the south is absolute fable and only enjoyable as long as you view it from that perspective. Shirley has some strong moments, but it is obvious that she is directed to scowl and told when to flash the dimples. I found her being made an honorary colonel quite a cloying moment, but the magic hits when she teams up with Robinson in dance. Audiences of the 1930's may have been fooled, but the artificiality of most of her performances is very clear today.

Neil Doyle I always get THE LITTLEST REBEL and THE LITTLE COLONEL mixed up when I think of SHIRLEY TEMPLE films, but while they both have the same sort of background (the Civil War and post-Civil War), the quality of entertainment is vastly different.This one gets off to a painfully dull start, with Shirley's mother (EVELYN VENABLE) running off with a Yankee (JOHN BOLES), and later returning home with her little girl only to find that the grandfather has never forgiven her for marrying a Yank. Naturally, it's up to little Shirley to melt the heart of the crusty grandfather (LIONEL BARRYMORE) and we all know how that's going to turn out.What makes the film interesting are the dance segments with BILL ROBINSON, as the tap dancing servant, most memorably in the staircase dance that is always shown whenever there are film clips from any of Shirley's Fox films. And for an added surprise, there's the finale which is photographed in three strip Technicolor and gave the world its first glimpse of the child star in color.Summing up: Racial elements are plentiful but, hey, this was 1935--a different world then--but the story is so wishy-washy that it's only suitable for die hard Temple fans.

dwpollar 1st watched 12/17/2004 - 4 out of 10(Dir-David Butler): Cute but minimalistic fare from the Olsen Twins of her generation, Shirley Temple. The best parts of this movie are the dance routines with the black slave butler-like character and Miss future Temple-Black. We really don't get enough of these and the story itself, set in post-Civil war times in the south is pretty flimsy and setup just so "the cute one" can save the day with her charm. She is definitely charming, but it doesn't carry this particular movie unless maybe for the younger girls of this generation who also like the similar plot-less "Olsen twin" type movies.

paptwin There will never be a child star to match Shirley Temple. A born actress, dancer, and entertainer. In this movie she has an amazing support cast of Lionel Barrymore who plays the part of a crusty grandfather but Shirley with her cute and charming ways soon melts the heart of the old grandfather.Hattie Mac Daniel plays the faithful servant and once again it made you realize just how much these beloved negroes sometimes knew more than " The white folks". The dancing down the steps with "Bojangles Bill Robinson" is something that can make you appreciate the talent of a young and not so young. The story line can be weak in places and the acting might be a bit corny to todays standards but if you need a feel good movie then drag out a Shirley Temple movie . You won't be disappointed.